


Choices

by Makemegray



Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-09-30
Updated: 2009-09-30
Packaged: 2017-10-12 18:24:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/127742
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Makemegray/pseuds/Makemegray
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is the first submission of mine for <a href="http://community.livejournal.com/khrfest/profile"><img/></a><a href="http://community.livejournal.com/khrfest/"><strong>khrfest</strong></a>, for October 1. The prompt was <em>Ryohei: Choices; "Boxings been good to me..."</em></p>
            </blockquote>





	Choices

  
  
  
  
  


**Entry tags:**

| 

  
[character: sasagawa ryohei](http://filthypages.livejournal.com/tag/character%3A%20sasagawa%20ryohei), [khrfest](http://filthypages.livejournal.com/tag/khrfest), [series: khr](http://filthypages.livejournal.com/tag/series%3A%20khr)  
  
  
---|---  
  
  
  
People liked to make it sound like he'd had a choice.

Like Sawada had come to him one day, introduced himself as a Mafia Don and had politely invited him to join, like it had been just that easy.

People told him that his sister's mistake in marrying a criminal didn't necessarily have to translate to him throwing his life away.

Like Tsuna would ever do anything illegal if he had a choice. Like this life hadn't been thrust on him by his father and by his blood.

And like Ryohei was supposed to disown Kyoko because she married the man she loved, regardless of what he had no choice but to do.

They said that he could have been a brilliant boxer if he hadn't given it up for a life of crime.

To that he smiled, punched his bandaged fist into his palm and responded nostalgically, subdued.

"Boxing has been good to me....It was always the one thing I could count on." He gave a wry smirk there, an expression uncharacteristic of him. "But what happens with I get Extremely injured? Or I get old? I can't trust boxing to be there for me forever. _Mia Famiglia_ though...is an extremely different story."

No one seemed to understand that.

It wasn't a matter of choice.

It was a matter of family.

Of his sister, his future nieces and nephews, his brother-in-law, and the men and women that he'd come to see as surrogate siblings.

Even Hibari, Mukurou and Gokudera.

If he'd had a choice, knowing the future, where would he have chosen to be?

Age 25: In Japan, maybe being disqualified from a match because one too many punches to the head was starting to make his vision blurry?

Or...

Age 25: In Sicily, The Sun Guardian of the Vongola Famiglia who blows away threats to the family with his bare hands?

How many other boxers could say that thousands of lives depended on the strength in their fists?

Would he chose to be one of hundreds or the only high ranking mafioso who had no need of a weapon?

The choice had been made for him the moment he'd locked gazes with those bettle-black eyes. Had been set in stone the minute he'd heard that baby's voice.

  


 _"Welcome to the Family, Sasagawa Ryohei"_

  
He supposed that he could have backed out before the Ring Battle against the Varia. Could have run and never looked back, made Kyoko find another love interest.

But where would that have left him?

A coward who'd broken his word and betrayed the team.

Unacceptable.

Gokudera had been one of those people once. After a mission, waiting for the coast to clear and for it to be safe to go home.

The Storm Guardian had lit a cigarette and looked over at Ryohei while he smoked, lightly frowning like he did when he'd come across a particular problem he couldn't solve.

"Lawn-Head," He'd started, Ryohei didn't have time to yell in protest before Gokudera continued."Why the hell are you even here? Shouldn't you be off boxing somewhere? Being famous and shit?"

Ryohei had blinked a moment at the suddenness of the question before he smirked, clapped Gokudera on the shoulder and told him why.

That was the day he'd become 'Sasagawa' to Gokudera. Because the other Guardian understood. Completely.

He'd become 'Gokudera' that day to Ryohei, when he heard that speech and instead of scoffing or calling him an idiot, he'd returned the smirk. Nodded and stubbed out his cigarette.

"Well done, Sasagawa. That was an answer worthy of the Vongola. I guess I won't have to kill you after all." And they'd gone for a drink.

When they'd finally gotten home, things had changed, Gokudera wasn't quite so nasty to him, shared a kind word or two and Ryohei understood. He'd passed Gokudera's test, learned to put the family before the self and that had gained the man's trust, his respect.

Ryohei wasn't going to comment on it...but he could have told Gokudera sooner if he'd only asked.

It had never been a matter of choice.

It had always been a matter of who or what he could lean on. Who or what he could count on to keep him floating when he was about to drown or keep him running when he was about to get shot.

Boxing was a hobby, a past time and he was damn good at it.

But _Mia Famiglia_...that was life.  



End file.
